House takes no action on Sandy aid bill

Dec. 31, 2012

In this Nov. 29, 2012 photo, charred beams and metal are all that remain of some of the more than 100 homes near the beach in Brick, N.J., that were destroyed in a massive fire touched off by Superstorm Sandy. Clearing the rubble and rebuilding the area is one of many challenges facing the Jersey Shore as it recovers from the storm. (AP Photo/Wayne Parry) / AP

Written by

MALIA RULON HERMAN

Gannett Washington Bureau

WASHINGTON — The House returned to work Sunday but did not act on a Senate-passed disaster relief bill for Superstorm Sandy victims.

The Senate voted 62-32 on Friday to pass a $60.4 billion aid bill after two days of debate. Twelve Republicans voted for the measure.

The House has until Thursday, when the 113th Congress is sworn in, to act on the measure. Otherwise, work on it must begin anew.

“The best way to handle it is to just pass the Senate bill,” said Democratic Rep. Frank Pallone of New Jersey, whose oceanfront district sustained major damage during the Oct. 29 storm that pummeled the Northeast coast from Maryland to Connecticut.

Democratic Rep. Rob Andrews of New Jersey agreed, but said he’s increasingly skeptical that negotiations among House GOP leaders and governors from states damaged by Sandy will produce an agreement on aid by Thursday.

“We are hours now from the end of the Congress,” he said.

Andrews, Pallone and other New Jersey lawmakers returned to Washington on Sunday intent on pressing Republican leadership and other lawmakers to back the Sandy relief bill.

But Washington is focused on negotiating an elusive deal to avoid the “fiscal cliff” of tax increases and spending reductions set to hit Jan. 1.

And support for the Sandy bill among House Republicans remained uncertain.

House Appropriations Committee Chairman Hal Rogers of Kentucky and other conservatives are calling for a much smaller bill to cover only the most urgent needs, putting off until 2013 legislation to address long-term needs such as protecting beaches and transportation networks from another storm.

A Senate amendment from Indiana Republican Sen. Dan Coats would have done just that, reducing the aid package to $24 billion. It was defeated on a party-line vote.

Another option being discussed would be to put the $60.4 billion Senate-passed bill on the floor and allow amendments, which would probably result in a much smaller bill.

“These arguments that are being used to divide it up make no sense,” Pallone said. “If we don’t do it now, then it becomes more difficult to do it later.”

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Andrews said if money needed for beach projects isn’t made available immediately, New Jersey Shore cities and towns might not be able to complete needed repairs in time for the 2013 summer beach season.

“To have a summer season, you can’t start that in March or April, you have to start that now,” he said. “The economic implications would be enormous.”

Republican Rep. Chris Smith said he and other New Jersey Republicans are working hard to press GOP leadership to bring up the Senate-passed Sandy relief bill.

“We’re making the case as aggressively as we can,” he said, describing a meeting Sunday with House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Va.

“I do believe that he gets it,” Smith said of Cantor.

Smith said he’s “profoundly committed” to the Senate bill, which contains less than the $82 billion New Jersey, New York and Connecticut had originally requested.

A spokesman for Republican Rep. Frank LoBiondo of New Jersey said relief for Superstorm Sandy victims doesn’t have to come from the Senate-passed bill, as long as Congress acts before Thursday.

“He’s talking to the House leadership about this,” LoBiondo spokesman Jason Galanes said. “We have time to get this done.”

Rep. Charles Rangel, a New York Democrat, said he’s “optimistic” the House will pass the Sandy aid bill.

“This is a national tradition,” he said, referring to the federal government’s practice of assisting areas hit by natural disasters. “It’s not discussed, it’s not offset, it’s just done. I don’t know how a fiscal conservative ignores the pain and suffering.”